Unmasked~ A Masky fic

One fateful fall afternoon

        The small town I lived in had always been relatively quiet, aside from a string of murders and disappearances plaguing the area for as long as anyone could remember. I moved here eight years ago but recently the murders had been picking up, all the bodies found in the nearby woods leaving many to believe a serial killer was on the loose. Conspiracy theories were becoming the main topic of discussion. Some believed it was a serial killer and rallied outside of the police station demanding more be done, whilst others thought the different kill methods and states of the bodies were too different to be one person. My town was always hit the lightest, neighboring towns got the brunt of it. Every now and then I would hear of someone going missing but it was a rare occurrence, unfortunately, that couldn't be said for all areas affected. It was a different story for them, missing reports filled constantly. You'd think the murders would have put me on edge, and discouraged me from going out alone, but here I was walking along the edge of the woods to the convenience store.

      It was a lovely fall afternoon, the weather was pretty warm for mid-November with a sight breeze ever so often picking up to a gust of wind to balance out the warmth. I felt the wind tickle my neck sending a slight shiver down my spine as I listened to the harsh crinkle of the leaves below my feet as I walked. There wasn't much foliage anymore, not that there ever was. When autumn rolled around the leaves would take on a dull brown, appearing wilted and giving off a feeling of sorrow. By now most of the trees stood naked, shedding their adornment in preparation for the winter to come. The forest gave off an eerie feel; Perhaps just because of the events surrounding it, but it felt like it was more than that. I shook my head as if to shake the thoughts away. If I kept thinking like this it would make the walk home that much harder.

       My car was in the shop, all thanks to a drunk friend crashing into it whilst trying to park, so begrudgingly I decided to walk the half hour to the store in desperate need of cigarettes. I finally reached the store, opening the door and walking in. Because of the crime increase in the area, the streets had been pretty empty as of late, and there was only one other person in the store. I made note of the man standing in the aisle to my left looking at the shelves of snacks. I couldn't help but notice how attractive he was as I stared a little longer than I probably should have. He had short hickory brown hair that just barely touched the back of his neck. it fell nicely over his face highlighting his focused expression. He had slight sideburns and soft brown eyes. He wore a red flannel with some jeans and work boots. I assumed he worked outside based on his overall appearance especially due to his built body. His sleeves were folded above his elbow showing his strong arms as he held an item from the shelf in his hand. He stood about 5'10 at least, but given my short stature, I could be way off. A noise coming from in front of me snapped me away from my thoughts. I walked up to the counter more than ready to collect the item I sought out for.

"Hello Alex, ID?"

"Really Tom? We dance this dance every time. I was 24 last time I showed you and I sure as hell haven't aged back three years since." He sighed with a smile on his face.

"Store policy" He replied.

"Tom please shut up about store policy," I whined. He raised an eyebrow still smiling and holding his hand out waiting for the ID. I grunted taking out the ID and placing it in his outstretched hand glaring at him as he began to laugh.

"I will never get over how dumb your ID picture looks." He kept laughing as he handed it back.

"Yeah yeah just get me my shit." I sighed.

"Lemme guess...two Marlboro reds? Or are we going Newports today?"

"Going red this time..." he grabbed two packages of my chosen cigarettes out from behind him, placing them on the counter.